The Tribune

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS

Tribune Staff Reporter

lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) signed a five-year industrial agreement with the Bahamas Hotel and Restaurant Employers Association (BHREA) yesterday valued at some “tens of millions” that will affect about 10,000 employees.

This agreement serves the employees of Atlantis, Ocean Club Four Seasons, Lyford Cay Club and Town Hotel.

Darrin Woods, president of BHCAWU, noted this was the first agreement since 2013. He said the agreement took effect yesterday.

“Some of the things we were able to get for the membership across the board would have been an 11 per cent increase across the board,” he said.

“For the tip category, it would be 11 per cent on top of the minimum wage. For the non-tip, it will be 11 per cent on the last negotiated rate. We were able to get lump sum payments for them, which are historic.

“What we were able to achieve under this industrial agreement has never been done in the history of our 65 years of existence, so we were very, very pleased with that.”

Mr Woods said achieving “quality” base pay for tipped employees to access bank credit better and improve their living standards was a key goal for the union.

BHREA president Russell Miller said both parties hope not to let the industrial agreement expire for as long as the previous one did.

“Some of the changes in the agreement are things that over for the last 11, 12 years have not been affected, have not been impacted,” Mr Miller said after the agreement was signed at the National Training Agency.

“We have reached the agreement. It impacts the overall take-home performance of our team members substantially. This was not an easy decision because we knew it was going to impact the association particularly, but it was the right thing to do because of the fact that folks have not received increases or not gotten the benefit of an industrial agreement over the last 12 years.”

The Department of Labour intervened earlier this year amid a standoff between the two sides.

Labour Minister Pia Glover-Rolle noted yesterday that this was the 24th trade union agreement signed over the past 28 months.